Neither they of the priesthood,
nor clergymen, nor laymen, who are invited to a love feast, may take
away their portions, for this is to cast reproach on the ecclesiastical
order.

Notes.

Ancient Epitome of Canon
XXVII.

A clergyman invited to a love feast shall carry nothing
away with him; for this would bring his order into shame.

Hefele.

Van Espen translates: “no one holding any
office in the Church, be he cleric or layman,” and appeals to the
fact that already in early times among the Greeks many held offices in
the Church without being ordained, as do now our sacristans and
acolytes. I do not think, however, with Van Espen, that by
“they of the priesthood” is meant in general any one
holding office in the Church, but only the higher ranks of the clergy,
priests and deacons, as in the preceding twenty-fourth canon the
presbyters and deacons alone are expressly numbered among the
ἱερατικοῖς
and distinguished from the other (minor) clerics. And afterwards,
in canon XXX., there is a similar mention of three different grades,
ἱερατικοί,
κληρικοί, and
ἀσκηταί.

The taking away of the remains of the agape is
here forbidden, because, on the one hand, it showed covetousness, and,
on the other, was perhaps considered a profanation.